ENGINES OF CHAOS

The second installment of Ford’s Age of Uprising trilogy (after Engines of Empire, 2022) continues the grand-scale fantasy narrative that follows a group of adventurers and their struggle to win back their nation from usurpers.

After Sullivar Archwind—the emperor of Torwyn—is assassinated, the industrial powerhouse is thrown into chaos. For generations, every aspect of Torwyn’s society has been ruled by the Guilds (transportation, mining, military, farming, etc.) and driven by the magic pyrestones that power everything from weapons to machinery. But with Sanctan Egelrath—the ruthless Archlegate of the Draconate Ministry—systematically dismantling the entire Guild system and rebuilding the country as an inflexible theocracy, time is quickly running out for those who want to avenge Sullivar’s death and reestablish the Guilds. Following numerous characters, the intertwining storylines chronicle the action and intrigue from a diversity of perspectives. Former Guildmaster Rosomon Hawkspur attempts to stay alive long enough to assemble an army while her daughter, Tyreta, embarks on a quest to find an artificer whose forbidden magical experimentation could help defeat the Ministry. Swordwright Lancelin Jagdor of the Archwind Guild, on a mission to find potential allies to join Rosomon’s forces, travels through his devastated homeland in search of an increasingly rare commodity: hope. Rosomon’s son Conall—believed to be dead in a shipwreck—is sold into slavery and becomes an unknowing pawn in a much larger, and more nefarious, game of world domination. While the worldbuilding isn’t as much a focus in this novel as in its predecessor, the ensemble cast of deeply portrayed and emotionally connected characters, coupled with an impressively intricate storyline, makes for a highly entertaining read. Additionally, the novel’s structure—alternating back and forth among numerous story arcs—gives this doorstopper a continuous sense of immediacy and momentum, making for a virtually un-put-down-able read.

Fans of shelf-bending fantasy will find this richly described and impressively intricate installment utterly satisfying.